SIDE A | by Thomas Andrew Tasselmyer1. Kyle Bobby Dunn | Empty Gazing
This track is my favorite from this record. I’ve spent a lot of time with it, and as a result, it is closely tied to many of the most affecting experiences I’ve had in recent years. What I love about KBD is his ability to generate purely evocative texture, and by that I mean that I never catch myself wondering how he’s creating the sounds he presents on his album, as I do with others in this genre… It just doesn’t matter in the moment. I can simply listen to his Music and let my mind react. It is truly an emotional experience to intently listen to his Music while observing what kinds of feelings and memories it can draw out. I always come back to this song for Inspiration.

2. Miles Davis | So WhatKind Of Blue was an Earth-shaking album for me when I discovered it in Middle School, and is one I still listen to at least once a week. I’d always appreciated Jazz, but felt a disconnect with the Music in some way. I often felt a sense of inadequacy when listening to the Parkers and Coltranes and Gillespies of the genre, as if I didn’t deserve to be listening to the sheer talent on display. However, I distinctly remember buying this album and reading Bill Evans’ brilliant liner notes comparing the Music to the open, improvisational flow of Japanese painters. I felt like I had finally found in modal Jazz something I could relate to. There was Freedom and Emotional Expression in this music that stretched way beyond theory, chord charts, and structures, and I was hooked then and there.3. The Who | My Generation
Wow. As an impressionable young middle schooler who had just started playing bass guitar, this song (and John Entwistle’s playing) made me want to get better. I’ll never forget the days I spent repeating The Ox’s bass solo over and over again through the Stereo in my room, trying to figure out each note, and then experiencing the joy of having finally done so. I have a tendency to play bass like John did: too hard, too loud, too brash, all while standing still as a stone (but of course, I do it at a much lower degree of proficiency!). I wish I could meet him today, shake his hand, and thank him for all of the inspiration he gave me.

4. Igor Stravinsky | The Firebird: 1919 Suite (aka Concert Suite For Orchestra No. 2) - (5) Finale (Played by BRT Philharmonic Orchestra; Conductor: Alexander Rahbari)My love for Music comes from many influences, but one of the strongest was my Middle School band teacher, Mr. Sindler. He chose this piece of Music for one of our honor band’s earliest performances. Playing such an intense piece gave me a really deep appreciation for Composition and the power of dynamics within an arrangement. A side benefit to this performance was the exposure it gave me to the world of early 20th century Classical Music. It set me on a path of discovery as I read about Stravinsky’s own life as well as many of his contemporaries. It was my gateway to a truly amazing period in Music History.

5. Stars Of The Lid | Requiem For Dying Mothers, Part 1
+ Part 2... To say that Adam Wiltzie is my musical hero is probably an understatement. I love three things he seems to include in all of his pieces: Simplicity, Space, and Subtlety. He has unparalleled command of all three of these elements. This 2-song Requiem suite, in particular, really does it for me. Simple themes (the repeating string melody in Part 1), spacious mixing (that empty space in the beginning of Part 1), and subtle introduction of parts (the bass swells to start Part 2! Amazing!) come together to create a really powerful piece. This song never fails to move me.6. Mutemath | Chaos
This band wasn't just a breath of fresh air to me; it was a full-on F5 tornado. I first heard it through my mom's car's speakers over a decade ago, and it's held up tremendously well in the years since. Mutemath has taught me to invest myself fully in the songwriting process and to think not just as a musician locked in a studio, but as a performer on stage. How would this sound live? is a question I always ask myself during the writing process, and I do it because I've been blown away over a dozen times while watching Mutemath perform.

7. Erik Satie | Gymnopédie No. 1 (Played by Daniel Varsano, Philippe Entremont)
This piece taught me to value Space and Simplicity. Perhaps more importantly, it also taught me to not take myself too seriously. Satie was brilliant in his direct challenges to the musical authorities of his day, perhaps most clearly in the Gymnopédie suite, and never quite got the recognition he deserved. I would have loved to sit down for a drink with him and pick his brain.

8. Vince Guaraldi Trio | O Tannenbaum (Cover of the German Christmas Song based on a Traditional Folk Song)
Yes, a Christmas song. My affection for this album can't be exaggerated and borders on ridiculous. The period from Thanksgiving to Christmas Day is unquestionably my favorite time of year, and I am one of those people who can listen to Christmas Music in July. Because of that, this record has been the soundtrack to so many positive holiday experiences that it's really become the definition of familial joy for me. I feel so much excitement, nostalgia, and warmth when this track comes on that I can't help but include it on this list.

9. Milieu | Cloud Counting
I have an addiction to Low Fidelity and handmade craft. This is one of the most beautiful songs I've ever heard, and every time I hear it, I am left wondering how someone could conjure such Magic with just a guitar and a tape recorder. It's inspiring.10. Hammock | South
Maybe it's cliché for a modern Ambient artist to include Hammock on a list like this, but I really don't care. Hammock changed my life. I put this song on and I am instantly left dreaming of things that were and things that could have been. Mike and I have each said that we want this song played at our funerals. Trust me when I say that that's one of the highest compliments I could give.

SIDE B | by Michael Lawrence Tasselmyer

This is a list mostly of what’s influenced me the most over the years. Some of it I still listen to a lot; some of it I don’t. It’s not the trendiest list ever curated, but all of these songs have shaped who I am and the Music I make more than anything else.

1. Mutemath | Reset
I first heard this song in Middle School, when I was first getting really serious about Music. I was blown away by the drums and atmospherics and the way the band was able to tell a story without speaking a single word. It was my gateway into Instrumental Music and challenged me to think outside of the verse-chorus-verse formula that I was so used to hearing.

2. Ramones | Commando
Two minutes of loud, fast, fun, no bullshit Punk Rock. This band inspired me to play the electric guitar.

3. U2 | With Or Without YouThe Edge is my all-time favorite guitarist; maybe that’s cliché to say but whatever. Nobody’s better at saying so much with so few notes. The way it fades out with just a simple 4-note riff instead of some bombastic solo just floors me every time. Also, delay.

4. The Police | Bombs Away The Police evoke so much nostalgia for me. My dad was really into them and always had their tapes playing in the car; the first musical memory I have is sitting in the back seat listening to Message In A Bottle come through the speakers. I never stopped listening to them after that; there was a point in High School where Andrew and I had this CD in our car’s player for at least 5 months straight. Andy Summers plays one of my favorite guitar solos of all time in this song. I think they’re a criminally underrated and overlooked band even though the sales figures wouldn’t suggest that.

5. Radiohead | Treefingers
People tend to love or hate Kid A; I’m firmly in the former category. It’s weird, different, and emotional… I love the textures in this song in particular. I used to listen to it while I walked across campus after evening classes in College, at a point where I didn’t really know what I wanted to do with my life or how to figure that out. It has a sort of optimistic vibe, though, so I always associated it with Hope in the midst of Uncertainty. It stuck with me.6. Hammock | Gold Star Mothers
Where to even begin with Hammock… Words aren’t enough. A lot of people hear a record, love it, then say it changed my life, but for me, this one actually did in very real and tangible ways. It got me through a particularly dark time and I don’t think I’d have the same approach to Art or Life in general had I not heard it at that point. It’s in constant rotation and will always be special.

7. A Winged Victory For The Sullen | Steep Hills Of Vicodin Tears
In College I watched a video featuring Adam Wiltzie (a certifiable genius, in my humble opinion - though he would probably strongly disavow that label) describing his approach to Music, in which he says: I’m obsessed with everything that’s slow. If I had a tattoo, it would say Slow Down. A while later I got a tattoo that says Slow Down. I try to do that as much as I can, but ironically I have a crippling addiction to caffeine and running.

8. This Will Destroy You | Quiet
Seminal album from a seminal band in this genre… I remember hearing this for the first time and just thinking Whoa. So it’s OK to be really noisy. I should try that sometime.

9. Jakob | Pneumonic
A lot of Post Rock can be pretty formulaic and predictable. Jakob’s Music isn’t. This whole album is so brooding and heavy and impossible to ignore or just let escape into the background and I love these guys for their patience. The tension they’re able to develop over the course of this song is almost palpable and by the time it drops a little after 4 minutes in, I’m ready to run through a wall. Or something like that. This was always my rainy day album in School.

10. Katy Perry | Teenage Dream
Perfect Pop song. Katy is great.

SIDE C | by Stephen Mark Tasselmyer

1. Steve Angelo VS. AN21 & Sebjak | GODS
Because it goes the fuck in.

2. Lorde | Ribs
It sounds nostalgic and makes me feel nice.

3. deadmau5 | Pets
This is the perfect Progressive song, in my opinion.

4. CHVRCHES | Gun
This song is too catchy.5. Sunnery James & Ryan Marciano, DubVision | Triton (Dance Valley 2013 Anthem)
The breakdown is one of the most epic things I've ever heard.6. The Naked And Famous | All Of This
A great opening to a great album.

7. Dimitri Vangelis & Wyman X Steve Angello | Payback
The title fits the audio better than any song I know.

8. Lana Del Rey | This Is What Makes Us Girls
The atmospherics complement the vibe of the Music and lyrics perfectly.9. Nadia Ali, Starkillers & Alex Kenji | Pressure (Alesso Remix)
One of the best Progressive tracks of all time. The stutter tremolo on the chorus' chords gives me goose bumps.

10. This Will Destroy You | The Mighty Rio Grande
I think this is one of TWDY's most underrated songs. I appreciate their older material, which seems more emotional and immersive.